Even in losses, Pitt showing signs of progress

Give Pitt this much credit as it sinks toward the bottom of the ACC standings:

The Panthers do the tough stuff as well as any team in the conference.

Yes, Pitt has lost seven of nine and no longer is a middle-of-the-pack ACC team, but in the areas of defense, offensive rebounding and forcing turnovers, few teams in the conference are better.

Pitt ranks fourth in the ACC in average points allowed (64.4), and only two conference teams hit the offensive glass as successfully as Pitt (333 offensive rebounds).

Victories and defeats are based on shooting and scoring, however, and that has been a problem. Pitt is 13th in average points (65.5) and 14th in shooting percentage (40.6).

Still, there are reasons to carry hope into the last three games of the regular season.

Let’s look at three of them:

1. Pitt is pesky on defense

A good example of that was a steal by Xavier Johnson late in Saturday’s 59-56 loss to Virginia.

Seconds after he scored to cut the Virginia lead to four, Johnson rushed Virginia guard Kihei Clark from behind — it looked like Clark never saw him — made the steal off a dribble, scored on a layup and was fouled.

Those were Pitt’s last points of the game. Johnson missed the free throw, and Pitt squandered subsequent chances to win or force overtime.

But the Panthers didn’t roll over after trailing by 14 with 6 minutes, 24 seconds left.

“The last four minutes, they made some plays,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. “They attacked.”

The steal by Johnson was Virginia’s 16th turnover of the game, which shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone watching Pitt this season. Pitt opponents commit an average of 15.4 (14.4 in ACC games). Pitt leads the conference in turnover margin (plus-3.6) and is second in turnovers forced (431).

“We were the aggressor,” Johnson said. “We’re a good defensive team. That’s where we excel.”

That is small progress because it occurred in another defeat, but it is an indicator coach Jeff Capel hasn’t lost his team.

2. Can Pitt beat Syracuse?

Pitt has lost six in a row to the Orange, who visit Petersen Events Center on Wednesday in the final home game of the season. That includes three last season by margins of 11, nine and 14 points and this season’s 69-61 defeat at the Carrier Dome.

Syracuse (15-12, 8-8) is 2-5 since the most recent meeting, and Pitt scored 40 points in the second half of that game. The Panthers have done that only five times in 34 halves against ACC teams. Pitt shot 53.6% after halftime. Justin Champagnie and Terrell Brown combined to hit 10 of 12 shots.

Capel found a way to solve the Syracuse 2-3 zone. If he wins the battle of wits with Jim Boeheim, Pitt has a good chance for victory.

3. What about the postseason?

With three games remaining in the regular season, Pitt has fallen to a tie for 12th in the 15-team ACC, ahead of only Wake Forest and last-place North Carolina.

That would mean opening the ACC Tournament in Greensboro, N.C., at noon March 10 against the 13th seed, perhaps one of the 10/11-loss teams (Boston College, Miami or Virginia Tech).

The Syracuse game is important for the Panthers (15-13, 6-11), not only for ACC seeding, but to give them a shot at 17 victories entering the tournament and 19 to present to the NIT committee.

Is that looking too far ahead? Capel would offer a definitive, “Yes!”

Pitt probably needs to win four more games to even be considered an NIT bubble team. That won’t be easy.

How bad does that Nicholls State loss look now?

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